April 16th, 2013, 9:18 pm ·

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Riverside County Supervisor Jeff Stone got back to me last night with answers to some questions I posed about his decision not to run for Congress in 2014.

Unfortunately, his responses didn't make my deadline. But I wanted to share them with you because they lend further insight into why he won't challenge Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Corona.

What I found interesting was that Stone left the door open, however slightly, to running for re-election when his term expires at the end of 2016. He has said previously this would be his last term as supervisor.

"I have no interest in running for State Senate or Assembly now or in the near future," Stone wrote in an email.

"As far as running again for County Supervisor, while today I am not planning on a 4th term, I will reserve making that final decision in June of 2015. I will want to ensure my long term goals are reached including the passing of the New Wine Country Plan which will create thousands of new jobs , and, building more Jails, to ensure no prisoner in our county is released prior to the completion of their sentences."

On why he's not running for Congress next year:"My dear wife has some health issues which we have to deal with and she remains my top priority. In addition I have a new granddaughter that I want to spend time with and nurture a close grandfather/granddaughter relationship. Traveling 300,000 miles a year, and thus being away from my family 4 days a week will add to these challenges.

"Secondly, the effort to unseat an entrenched incumbent is difficult, but not insurmountable. But with the primary only a year away, it would be challenging to do a true door to door campaign and attend enough coffees and speaking events to reveal my problem solving platform and gain name recognition , let alone raising $1 million dollars to fund the campaign!"

On his confidence in Calvert's leadership:"I recognize that Congressman Calvert is one out of 435. Over his 20 years in congress he has faced redistricting three times. His last district included a big swath in Orange County diluting his influence over the distribution of financial resources to his entire district. Now he represents just Riverside County including the Southwest portion.

"He has assured me he will help make the Murrieta Creek improvements one of his top priorities for funding as our Cities and I are growing very impatient,and justifiably so, in light of a 100 year flood that can happen at anytime. Congressman Calvert and I will agree to disagree on the merits of his fiscal cliff vote. I do not support increasing taxes when SPENDING remains the problem.

"Also, extending unemployment benefits to those not actively seeking work is still troubling for me. It's my hope that Congressman Calvert will practice more fiscally conservative policies and not align himself, even with the speaker, who has strayed from fiscally sound ideologies. While I have decided not to run in 2014, I will be astutely observing our party's votes and policies, and , reserve the opportunity to run in the future if our party continues to stray from our basic principles."

On whether anyone approached him about not running against Calvert: "Of course I reached out to many friends in the political arena and was encouraged by some and discouraged by others."

"Many suggested that while I would be considered formidable, I would take money from other much more challenging races and thus hurt the party , and risk causing the House to potentially fall into democratic hands. I saw wisdom in that argument."

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